Nov. 18, 2006

Box Score

Honolulu, Hawaii - The Georgetown University women's basketball team dropped their first game in the Waikiki Beach Marriott Classic in a 69-58 loss to the host University of Hawai'i Friday night at the Stan Sheriff Center. The Hoyas fall to 0-2 while UH wins their season opener. The Hoyas faced a 17-point halftime deficit but sliced their deficit to nine points in the second half with a furious comeback that fell a bit short.

Georgetown freshman Shanice Fuller (Chesapeake, Va./Indian River) paced the Hoyas with 12 points while Kieraah Marlow (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville) and Katrina Wheeler (Washington, D.C./T. Roosevelt) finished with 11 apiece. Junior Aminata Diop (Saint Louis, Senegal/Southeastern Illinois J.C.) added eight points, six rebounds and two blocks off the bench. Junior Kristin Heidloff (Chicago, Ill./Fenwick) finished with nine points and a career-high five steals.

The Hoyas trimmed the second half deficit to nine points on two different occasions 52-43 and 54-45 near the eight minute mark. The first came after a Marlow steal led to a Kenya Kirkland (Brooklyn, N.Y./Grand Street Campus) transition layup followed by a Wheeler offensive rebound and put back.

Inside of the three minute mark with GU down 62-52, UH was able to get grab two straight offensive rebounds on the same possession to take almost a minute off the clock when the Hoyas desperately needed the basketball on the offensive end.

The Hoyas faced a 17-point halftime deficit as the Rainbow Wahine made 43 percent of the shots and committed just three turnovers in the opening stanza.

Marlow picked up two quick fouls in the first two minutes of the contest and the Hoyas trailed 10-4 through the first five minutes. Hawai'i 6-4 senior center Brittany Grice had six points in the early going. Grice would end up scoring 13 points in the first half and finished with 15 for the game.

Georgetown cut the UH lead to 19-14 with 7:49 left in the opening period when Wheeler stole a pass at the top of the key and converted on a fast break layup.

The Rainbow Wahine then went on a 17-4 run over a six-minute stretch to extend their lead to 36-18 with 1:39 left before halftime. UH went 7-11 from the floor during the run and took advantage of five Georgetown turnovers.

The Hoyas shot 33 percent from the floor (20-60).

Pam Tambini totaled 16 points for Hawai'i and Janevia Taylor added 11 points, five assists and three steals in a team-high 37 minutes.

The Hoyas will take on Eastern Kentucky University on Saturday at 1 p.m. local time, 6 p.m. on the east coast. The Colonels lost to No. 3 Oklahoma, 92-79 in Friday night's first game.